Summertime is quieter than the rest of the year for most families, with more open calendars and less stress, but our family faith life doesn’t have to be quiet! I’ve shared before that each summer I choose some special devotional or faith topic to explore with my kids. For example, we might create a scripture reading plan or learn more about Lectio Divina, the Beatitudes, or the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
One summer, we learned about Marian consecration and my children consecrated themselves to the Blessed Virgin Mary. We reconsecrated our family to Mary the following summer, and we’re planning to do it again.
So what is Marian consecration and how does it work?
What Is Marian Consecration?
According to St. Louis de Montfort, Marian consecration is “the surest, easiest, shortest, and most perfect means” to become a saint. St. Louis is the original guy who encouraged this particular devotional practice.
He laid out the 33 day preparation in his book True Devotion to Mary. During these 33 days, we grow in holiness and renew our baptismal promises. We are often unaware of the habits or attitudes that are clouding our judgment; consecration begins a process of sanctification in which we turn away from self-love and toward Jesus Christ through Mary.
Pope John Paul II had a special devotion to Our Lady, and he went through the 33 day consecration many times. If JP2 thought it was a path to holiness, I’m all for it!
I first participated in a Marian consecration in 2017 when I purchased 33 Days to Morning Glory by Michael Gaitley, which is an attempt to update and simplify St. Louis’s approach to consecration. I’ve never actually tried St. Louis’s book. Some people prefer it to Gaitley’s, but others find Gaitley’s book less intimidating.
If you’d like to try Marian consecration before you do it with your kids, I highly recommend Gaitley’s book. It’s like a do-it-yourself retreat over 33 days. It helped deepen my dependence on Mary and my understanding of her role in the world.
Consecration with Kids
When your ready to lead a mini-consecration retreat for your whole family, the best resource to use with children is Carrie Gress’s Marian Consecration for Children: Bringing Mary to Life in Young Hearts and Minds. It’s beautifully done. Through stories of saints, knights, queens, and even fairy tales, kids learn about Jesus and his mother, they hear that they have a special mission, and they get a unique perspective on the virtues and vices. The book has reflections to take you through 33 days, with discussion questions and prayers following each reflection.
We picked a day to start our consecration retreat so that the Act of Consecration was made on a Marian feast day. If you want to do the same and you’d like to start soon, begin your consecration preparation on August 6, 10, or 13, because 33 days later falls on a Marian Feast day (September 8 – Nativity of Mary; September 12 – Holy Name of Mary; September 15 – Our Lady of Sorrows).
Each day, I read aloud the reflection to my kids, then we explored some of the discussion questions, and ended with the prayers. Even teenagers will get something from this if you do it as a family.
At the end of the 33 days, the children prayed an Act of Consecration. They each had their own copy of the prayer. After they made their Act of Consecration, they signed and dated it. We put their signed prayers in envelopes and tucked them away in a drawer in our family altar. You can renew your consecration and resign each year, or just talk about how you’ve all grown in faith over the year.
Take Your Marian Devotion to the Next Level!
More encouragement to try this devotion!
Dominican theologian Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange studied various forms of Marian devotions. He categorized them into stages from beginner to advanced as follows:
Level 1: occasional prayer (for example, praying a Hail Mary when in a pinch);
Level 2: regular and daily devotion (for example, devout recitation of the rosary on a near daily basis);
Level 3: formal act of consecration to Mary, and living in habitual dependence on her, as a means of uniting with Christ.
I found this interesting and motivating. Best of all, even small kids are capable of working on level 3!
As far as I know, nobody in my family has reached saint status yet, but the process of consecration has helped us each live with greater awareness of Mary’s example and her concern for our spiritual health. Mary is the perfect mother, caring for us as we make our way through the world.
More Summer Family Faith Ideas
Image: The Wilton Diptych, National Gallery, London (c. 1395-1399)